Staff at RTÉ, Newstalk and Irish Independent publisher Mediahuis were evacuated on Friday morning following threatening emails, disrupting live broadcasts and prompting a Garda investigation.
RTÉ’s Donnybrook campus was cleared as a precaution, with Gardaí attending the scene. Radio 1’s Morning Ireland was interrupted and the scheduled 9am programme, Today with David McCullagh, was initially replaced by music and a recorded message. McCullagh subsequently resumed broadcasting from an outside broadcast facility.
In a statement, RTÉ said: “RTÉ, along with a range of media organisations, received a threat this morning. In line with our security and safety protocols, the campus has been evacuated and some services are affected. Gardaí are on site in Donnybrook.”
Mediahuis staff also evacuated Independent House on Dublin’s Talbot Street before returning by midmorning. Newstalk and Today FM’s Marconi House premises were cleared, interrupting Newstalk presenter Claire Byrne’s programme. Broadcasting resumed after staff were permitted to return, with Byrne telling listeners the warning had been deemed a hoax.
Gardaí confirmed they were investigating threats against media organisations in Ireland and elsewhere in Europe. A spokesperson said: “An Garda Síochána has been liaising with the Irish media organisations and the threats will be investigated.” The alerts followed a series of bomb threats that disrupted European airline services earlier in the week and comes ahed of the next week’s meetings in Dublin of EU leaders as part of Ireland’s EU Presidency.
